Site selection NMR study on electronic state in and near vortex core of YBa2Cu4O8

We report a site-selective ¹⁷O spin-lattice relaxation rate T₁⁻¹ in the vortex state of YBa₂Cu₄O₈. We found that T₁⁻¹ at the planar sites exhibits an unusual nonmonotonic NMR frequency dependence. Based on T₁⁻¹ in the vortex core region, we establish strong evidence that the local density of states within the vortex core is strongly reduced.     

Quasiparticle density of states of 2H-NbSe2 single crystals revealed by low-temperature specific heat measurements according to a two-component model

Low-temperature specific heat in a dichalcogenide superconductor 2H-NbSe2 is measured in various magnetic fields. It is found that the specific heat can be described very well by a simple model concerning two components corresponding to vortex normal core and ambient superconducting region, separately. For calculating the specific heat outside the vortex core region, we use the Bardeen-Cooper Schrieffer （BCS） formalism under the assumption of a narrow distribution of the superconducting gaps. The field-dependent vortex core size in the mixed state of 2H-NbSe2, determined by using this model, can explain the nonlinear field dependence of specific heat coefficient γ（H）, which is in good agreement with the previous experimental results and more formal calculations. With the high-temperature specific heat data, we can find that, in the multi-band superconductor 2H-NbSe2, the recovered density of states （or Fermi surface） below Tc under a magnetic field seems not to be gapped again by the charge density wave （CDW） gap, which suggests that the superconducting gap and the CDW gap may open on different Fermi surface sheets.     

Geometrical surface vortex pinning in superconducting films

A model is proposed for vortex pinning in a superconducting film with a rough surface. The model relates the critical current to the steepness of the surface relief and, at a high vortex concentration, to the distance between neighboring steepness maxima on the paths of vortex motion. The dependence of the critical current density on the thickness of a high-T_c superconducting film is measured in a weak magnetic field. Its behavior can be explained by the pinning at the stepped surface relief.     

Coherent magnetic vortex motion in optically formed channels for easy flow in YBa2Cu3O7−x superconducting thin films

We report our results of investigation of electric and magnetic properties of partially oxygen-depleted channels for easy vortex motion in YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x (YBCO) superconducting, 50-μm-wide, and 100-μm-long microbridges at temperatures below the onset of the superconducting state critical temperature T _c ^on . The channels were produced by means of a laser-writing technique. The writing was performed using a 0.1–0.3 W power, continuous-wave laser radiation focused down to a ~ 5 μm spot on the surface of a superconducting film in a nitrogen gas atmosphere, and resulted in perpendicular stripes (channels) with partial (x ~ 0.2) reduction of the oxygen content in the YBCO stripe. The oxygen-depleted channels exhibit a depressed T _c and lower both the critical current density and the first critical magnetic field, as compared with the laser-untreated areas. The bias current applied to the bridge self-produced a magnetic flux that penetrated the channels in a form of Abrikosov magnetic vortices that, subsequently, moved coherently (a quasi-Josephson effect) along the channels in the narrow temperature range of 0.943 T _c ^on –0.98 T _c ^on and manifested themselves as steps on the current–voltage characteristics of our microbridges. Our results demonstrate that laser-induced formation of artificial channels of the flux flow can be used for a precise control of vortex nucleation and their coherent motion in pre-assigned regions of thin-film YBCO devices.     

I–V characteristics and critical currents in superconducting/ferromagnetic bilayers

Current–voltage (I–V) characteristics and critical current density, J_c, for the onset of vortex motion were measured at different magnetic fields, H, and temperatures, T, in a superconducting (S)/ferromagnetic (F) bilayer and in a single Nb film. We choose Nb as a superconductor and a weak ferromagnetic alloy, Pd_1−xNi_x with x = 16, as F. We found that J_c was smaller for the S/F bilayer with respect to the single Nb film. The result was related to the reduced value of the superconducting order parameter in the bilayer.     

High temperature superconductivity in the mixed state and the dynamics of charge carriers

A model to calculate the temperature and magnetic field dependence of the scattering time τ_ν(H, T) of quasiparticles by bound electron states in a vortex in high-temperature superconductors is proposed. In this model, the hydrodynamic interaction of a moving gas of quasiparticles with the discrete states of the vortex velocity field is regarded as quasielastic scattering and the resulting scattering time of quasiparticles is different from scattering of individual vortices. The normalized scattering time was found to decrease exponentially with increasing temperature. This behavior is due to the suppression of the amplitude of the superconducting order parameter as the temperature increases. This model accounts for the observed temperature and field dependence of the scattering time particularly at low-field regime.     

Normal phase and superconducting instability in the attractive Hubbard model: a DMFT(NRG) study

We study the normal (nonsuperconducting) phase of the attractive Hubbard model within the dynamical mean field theory (DMFT) using the numerical renormalization group (NRG) as an impurity solver. A wide range of attractive potentials U is considered, from the weak-coupling limit, where superconducting instability is well described by the BCS approximation, to the strong-coupling region, where the superconducting transition is described by Bose condensation of compact Cooper pairs, which are formed at temperatures much exceeding the superconducting transition temperature. We calculate the density of states, the spectral density, and the optical conductivity in the normal phase for this wide range of U, including the disorder effects. We also present the results on superconducting instability of the normal state dependence on the attraction strength U and the degree of disorder. The disorder influence on the critical temperature T _c is rather weak, suggesting in fact the validity of Anderson’s theorem, with the account of the general widening of the conduction band due to disorder.     

Microscopic description of superconductor-normal-metal superlattices

We study a model for superconductor-normal-metal superlattices in which adjacent layers are coupled via single-particle hopping. Examples include the high-T _c superconductor Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8+δ, where the BiO sheets seem to have normal metallic character. Using a BCS treatment, we investigate the influence of the interlayer hopping between the superconducting and the normal-metal slabs on the superconducting density of states, the tunneling characteristics for tunneling into both superconducting and normal-metal slabs as well as the temperature dependence of the London penetration depth.     

Density of states in dirty type II superconductors near Tc

We have determined the behavior of the density of states in the mixed state of superconducting alloys for T → T_c. The local density of states tends towards the BCS expression with the order parameter playing the role of the energy gap. The singularities are smeared out by the spatial average. The effective normal core radius of a vortex diverges like $\text{(1 ?}\text{T}\text{T}{}_{\mathrm{c}}\text{)}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>?</mtext><mtext>1</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}$ for T → T_c unlike the coherence length which diverges like $\text{(1 ?}\text{T}\text{T}{}_{\mathrm{c}}\text{)}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>?</mtext><mtext>1</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}$.     

Comparison of amorphous melt-spun and vapor-quenched Zr-Rh alloys

Amorphous Zr-Rh alloys produced by melt spinning have a higher superconducting transition temperature T_c than materials generated by r.f. cosputtering techniques. However, the temperature dependence of the upper critical field H_c²(T is consistent with the GLAG theory for both materials. The T_c differences, as well as variations in the electronic density of states, can be partially understood in terms of slight differences in the average density, perhaps due to the inclusion of Ar gas during sputtering.     

Superconductivity in a simple model of the pseudogap state

An analysis is made of characteristics of the superconducting state (s-and d-pairing) using a simple, exactly solvable model of the pseudogap state produced by fluctuations of the short-range order (such as antiferromagnetic) based on a Fermi surface model with “hot” sections. It is shown that the superconducting gap averaged over these fluctuations is nonzero at temperatures higher than the mean-field superconducting transition temperature T _c over the entire sample. At temperatures T > T _c superconductivity evidently exists in isolated sections (“ drops”). Studies are made of the spectral density and the density of states in which superconducting characteristics exist in the range T > T _c however, in this sense the temperature T = T _c itself is no different in any way. These anomalies show qualitative agreement with various experiments using underdoped high-temperature superconducting cuprates.     

Photoemission results of intermetallic superconductors: Nb3Al and MgB2

We study the superconducting electronic structures of Nb₃Al and MgB₂ using high-resolution spectroscopy. The obtained spectrum of Nb₃Al measured below T_c shows clear opening of the superconducting gap with a sharp pile up in the density of states and a shift of the leading edge. In addition, the spectrum shows a peak-dip-hump line shape expected from the strong-coupling theory. On the other hand, for MgB₂, the superconducting-state spectrum measured at 5.4 K shows a coherent peak with a shoulder structure, in sharp contrast to that expected from a single isotropic gap. The superconducting spectral shape of MgB₂ can be explained in terms of a multicomponent gap.     

Doping dependent tunneling conductance in SDW ordered copper oxide superconductors

It is observed that doping suppresses the long range anti-ferromagnetic order and induces superconducting phase for a suitable doping. In order to study this effect, we present a model study of the doping dependence of the tunneling conductance in high-T_c systems. The system is described by the Hamiltonian consisting of spin density wave (SDW) and s-wave type superconducting interaction in presence of varying impurity concentrations. The gap equations are calculated by using Green’s functions technique of Zubarev. The gap equations and the chemical potential are solved self-consistently. The imaginary part of the electron Green’s functions shows the quasi-particle density of states which represent the tunneling conductance observed by the scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). We investigate the effect of impurity on the gap equations as well as on the tunneling conductance. The results will be discussed based on the experimental observations.     

Influence of a non-uniform current density profile on quasiparticle excitations and thermally activated flux creep in YBa2Cu3O7−σ

The transport current density, flowing radially from the center of a superconducting disk to its perimeter, in a so-called Corbino geometry, results in a double action on the vortex motion when the applied magnetic field is perpendicular to the disk’s plane. First, the depinned vortices are set into a nearly circular motion in the plane of the disk. Second, the non-uniform current density profile activates the intrinsic weak links, resulting in a non negligible proximity dominated quasiparticle contribution. In turn, these intrinsic junctions impede the circular motion of vortices giving rise to a proximity influenced thermally activated flux creep. This provides a simple technique to deconvolute the flux motion and the quasiparticle induced components of the total dissipative resistivity broadening below T _c . The case for a YBaCuO disk is hereby examined and measured in this context. It is shown that such a deconvolution can be made and theoretical laws for the field dependences are also obtained and confirm the data. Furthermore, the paraconductivity region just above T _c (B) appears to be dominated by the macroscopic fluctuations accompanying the vortex core motion.     

Coherent transmission of nodal Dirac fermions through a graphene-based superconducting double barrier junction

Transport characteristics of relativistic electrons through graphene-based d-wave superconducting double barrier junction and ferromagnet/d-wave superconductor/normal metal double junction have been investigated based on the Dirac–Bogoliubov–de Gennes equation. We have first presented the results of superconducting double barrier junction. In the subgap regime, both the crossed Andreev and nonlocal tunneling conductance all oscillate with the bias voltage due to the formation of Andreev bound states in the normal metal region. Moreover, the critical voltage beyond which the crossed Andreev conductance becomes to zero decreases with increasing value of superconducting pair potential α. In the presence of the ferromagnetism, the MR through graphene-based ferromagnet/ d-wave superconductor/normal metal double junction has been investigated. It is shown that the MR increases from exchange splitting h ₀=0 to h ₀=E _F (Fermi energy), and then it goes down. At h ₀=E _F, MR reaches its maximum 100. In contrast to the case of a single superconducting barrier, Andreev bound states also manifest itself in the zero bias MR, which result in a series of peaks except the maximum one at h ₀=E _F. Besides, the resonance peak of the MR can appear at certain bias voltage and structure parameter. Those phenomena mean that the coherent transmission can be tuned by superconducting pair potential, structure parameter, and external bias voltage, which benefits the spin-polarized electron device based on the graphene materials.     

Study of the superconducting gap in a Fe0.5TiSe2 single crystal by ultrahigh-resolution photoemission spectroscopy

The 1T-Fe_0.5TiSe₂ compound has been investigated by ultrahigh-resolution photoemission spectroscopy in order to reveal changes in the density of states at a possible superconducting transition. The experimental results showed the presence of a superconducting gap with a width of about 2 meV in the spectrum measured at 4.5 K.     

Shot noise in a quantum dot with the coulomb interaction

We study the noise in a quantum dot which is coupled to metallic leads by using the non-equation of motion technique at the Kondo temperature T_K. We compute the out of equilibrium density of states, the current and the shot noise. We find that the shot noise exhibits a nonmonotonic dependence on the voltage when variation of ε_d values of the QD energy in the absence of the external magnetic field occurs. We also find that the amplitude of current exhibits a saturation behavior when driving field is increased.     

Application of nano-scale Josephson junction as phase sensitive detector for analysis of vortex states in mesoscopic superconductors

We study phase shifts in a Josephson junction induced by vortices in superconducting mesoscopic electrodes. The position of the vortices are controlled by suitable geometry of a nano-scale Nb–Pt_1−xNi_x–Nb junction of the overlap type made by Focused Ion Beam (FIB) sculpturing. The vortex is kept outside the junction, parallel to the junction plane. From the measured Fraunhofer characteristics the entrance and exit of vortices are detected. By changing the bias current through the junction at constant magnetic field the vortices can be manipulated and the system can be switched between two consecutive vortex states which are characterized by different critical currents of the junction. A mesoscopic superconductor thus acts as a non-volatile memory cell in which the junction is used both for reading and writing information (vortex). Furthermore, we observe that the critical current density of Nb–Pt_1−xNi_x–Nb junctions decreases non-monotonously with increasing Ni concentration. It exhibits a minimum at ∼40 at.% Ni, which is an indication of switching into the π state.     

Relationship between superconducting transition temperature and number of CuO2 layers in mercury-based superconductors

The nonmonotonic dependence of the superconducting transition temperature on the number of CuO₂ layers (n) per unit cell for mercury-based cuprate systems is investigated with the framework of the electrostatic model and the Ginsburg-Landau theory. It is found that the largest value of the normalized density of states is 1.8 when n = 3, which corresponds to the highest T_c in this series. Using reasonable parameters we predict an upper limit of T_c of 160 K.     

Microscopic Theory of Pinning of Multiquantum Vortex in Cylindrical Cavity

We have proposed and developed a microscopic model of depinning (escape) of a multiquantum vortex in a superconductor with a cylindrical nonconducting cavity with the transverse size smaller than or on the order of the superconducting coherence length ξ₀ at zero temperature. The spectrum of subgap quasiparticle excitations in two- and three-quantum vortices trapped by a cylindrical cavity has been calculated in the quasiclassical approximation. It is shown that the transformation of the spectrum is accompanied by break of anomalous spectral branches due to normal reflection of quasiparticles from the surface of a defect. A microscopic (spectral) criterion for multiquantum vortex pinning has been proposed; according to this criterion, the multiquantum vortex can be trapped in the cavity during the formation of a minigap in the elementary excitation spectrum near the Fermi level. Self-consistent calculations of density of states N(r, ε) for two- and three-quantum vortices trapped by a cylindrical cavity of radius on the order of ξ₀ have been performed using quasiclassical Eilenberger equations. In the pure limit and for low temperatures T ? T _c , peculiarities observed in the N(r, ε) distribution reflect the presence of M anomalous spectral branches in the M-quantum vortex and confirm the correctness of the spectral criterion of pinning (depinning) of a multiquantum vortex.